The present invention relates to serial data communication networks, and in particular to networks for interconnecting medical instrumentation.
In a typical computer network, computers are connected together over a communication medium. Each computer has its own, unique physical address which is used for identifying both the source and the destination of any transmission. Data and other information is typically sent in packets, with each packet containing a data field and a header setting forth the source and destination addresses, as well as other information. Different protocols exist for the header and for determining when a particular source can transmit.
In a number of fields, such as the medical field, it is desirable to be able to connect remote instruments to a central computer workstation. Typically, the instruments will gather data and have minimal processing power. The large bulk of data is typically transmitted from the instruments to the computer. In addition to the data, there may be alarm signals which need to be transmitted and immediately received.
It would be desirable to have a system optimized for network communication from a number of medical or other instruments to a central computer.